She was one of the big names in bossa nova. Brazilian singer Astrud Gilberto, famous for her rendition of "The Girl From Ipanema," has died at the age of 83, her family announced Tuesday. "She was the face and voice of bossa nova in most parts of the world. Astrud will remain forever in our hearts," Sofia Gilberto, his granddaughter, also a singer, wrote on Instagram.
Astrud Gilerto gained international fame in 1963, at the age of 23, for his performance of the song "The Girl From Ipanema" ("Garota de Ipanema", in Brazilian), with her husband João Gilberto, and saxophonist Stan Getz. Becoming cult, this title composed a year earlier by Tom Jobim has since been covered by many artists including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald or Amy Winehouse.
Duet with Étienne Daho
Now famous, Astrud Gilberto divorced João Gilberto and only worked with Stan Getz. She collaborated with him in 1964 for the album "Getz au Go go", recorded live at the café "Au Go Go" in Greenwich Village, New York.
An icon of bossa nova, a musical genre at the crossroads of samba and jazz, at the height of his popularity in the 1960s, Astrud Gilberto is becoming more and more discreet. She returned to the front of the stage thirty years later by recording a duet with George Michael (Desafinado in 1996), then with Étienne Daho on the title "Les Bords de Seine", released the same year.
